Trade-Off

What is given up when one option is chosen over another.

Every criterion in a decision names a possible trade-off, and the intangible ones matter as much as the priced ones. Outsourcing, for instance, buys a competency cheaply and gives up some direct control over the work.

Often confused with

Risk (business decisions)
A trade-off is what you knowingly give up by choosing; risk is the chance that what you chose turns out worse than expected.

Taught in

See also

4.3.B.2 · 4.3.B.5